Unabridged Thoughts
by ShootingStarz01
Summary: 10 Missions. 5 days. An eerie manor. A missing experiment. Shadow didn't see any of it coming. As the darkness clouded around him, the ever-present Voice within him had vanished; he was no longer. What was this? Sequel to Merging Lies. Very mild ShadowxRouge.
1. Pull the Lever

_**IMPORTANT! **_**Read this before you read the story, or you may be lost!**

_**Author's Note/Disclaimer: **__**Oh, finally, a sequel! Just a few notes here! **_

_****This story is a sequel to Merging Lies and Splitting Truth. It is *highly, highly, highly* recommended that you read Splitting Truth first! (And just as highly recommended you read Merging Lies afterward.)** I appologize for forgetting to mention this earlier. S**__**ome characters may**__**seem**__** OOC due to certain unmentioned circumstances. Shadow and Rouge especially, so pay close attention. Over all, I did my best to keep them in character… **_

_**Do not be intimidated by the three (four if you count Voice) fan characters that pop up in Chapters 2 and 3. Two of them were just to fill the space! I didn't think any official characters would fit the bill, but I hope you'll find them entertaining in some way. This will be different from the two prequels, of course. It's a genuine sequel, not an alternate reality. There'll be another sequel to come after this. :) Please read, rate, and enjoy! Also note that unlike the prequels, this would not be canon against my main series.**_

_**Sarah and Liz © Angyll /Boospar of youtube. **__**Voice and all other briefly appearing characters belong to me. (Why use nameless nobodies for short roles anyway?) **__**All other characters © Sega! That's Shadow, Rouge, Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, Cream, Cheese, Big, Omega, Espio, Charmy, Vector, Shade, and anyone else I forgot! And Robotnick. Let's not forget him!**_

_**Unabridged Thoughts**_

_**By Maria Springer (ShootingStarz01)**_

Dreams. He was not a dreamer. Why should he ever have dreams? But alas, they haunted him like ghosts and plagued his mind with uncertainty. Not only uncertainty, but fear.

How had fear come to this fearless heart? Shudders would course through his tainted mind, but not through his formless body. He saw her.

He saw…

He wished he could see, but all he had were feelings. Vague, yet overwhelmingly strong emotions, as if something tremendous had happened and he had forgotten. The only image that would come at his beckoning was hers. The instant it would form, it would fade away and die. He could not keep her face in his mind. She was forgotten immediately. Nothing could revive her memory. Nothing.

It was unexplainable. It happened every so often over the months, on very rare instances. There was no visible trigger, just mystery and deep unsettlement within his soul.

What was this?

At first he did all he could to reach desperately for her memory, but unlike all other memories, hers hid itself. It resisted. Whatever was connected with her was even more rebellious. He was infuriated… so he gave up. When the dreams would flicker, he would do all in his power to _push _them away from him. To forget them. To forget her…

Who was she?

Shadow the hedgehog awoke at the familiar, yet entirely unwelcome ringing of a mechanical alarm clock. He silenced it immediately, lightly startled and disgruntled. He shut his eyes against the soft sunlight sifting through the bedroom window.

_Rise and shine, __**Annie**__. _The Voice purred. _The sun's out._

_Yeah, yeah. _Shadow practically growled back at him, burying himself a bit more in the bed sheets.

_Snappish today, are we? Well brilliant, because you have 10 missions in the next five days!_

The black and red hedgehog sprang up quicker than a rabbit from its hole. _What?!_

_There were some faxes last night! I bet you'll have __**so**__ much fun!_

Shadow ignored the Voice's jeering, leaping out of bed and dashing to the fax machine in the cluttered downstairs office. Indeed, there were some faxes… ten of them. He quickly flipped through them. The Voice was right.

…But the hedgehog heaved a slight sigh of relief. Rouge the bat would be with him. That would make things a lot easier. The pair made a wonderful team. 10 missions in five days was no picnic, but at least with a partner, they wouldn't be nearly so hard. He flipped through the last of the assignments, then stopped. There was an 11th. He hadn't seen it because the page was smaller than the others. His eyes scanned over the large newspaper cutout letters. It looked like it should be a ransom note, which was mildly unnerving. He stumbled on the first word but pressed on to read the entire message, "Project Shadow the Hedgehog and Agent Rouge the Bat, you're invited to Greystone Manor for dinner and fine company? Please come to 68 Weeping Willow in Kingdom Valley this afternoon at 4:30… all your friends will be there." Followed was some writing he couldn't read. It seemed to be in another language.

The Voice was curiously silent.

Shadow paused. All he could guess was that Sonic or one of the others had arranged this, though the writing at the bottom threw him off. How many others knew that Rouge was an agent? Or who knew all her and his friends? He hated to skip out on Sonic or one of the others after all they had done for him; their mercy and forgiveness was almost more than he could take. But he had work to do. He flipped through his missions again, then paused in wonder.

The earliest of them wasn't until very late tonight. Though it'd be ideal to sleep the afternoon and be prepared for five days of possibly nonstop work, he and Rouge could make it to the dinner beforehand if she agreed to it. He did owe Sonic and his friends much, after all. He glanced down the page of the first mission, this time looking at what it actually was. He froze.

Find and recover Project 666.

At first he didn't know what to think. He felt confusion and confliction. Then the Voice began to laugh. _Why look, it's one of your countless 'sisters'! Astounding that they would dare choose you to go after her… The one with the devil's number on her, is it? Wasn't she shut down years ago because of her psychopathic nature?_ The Voice laughed some more, clearly enjoying the situation. _Yes, she was! For attacking both the scientists and other experiments! Well, well… Looks like she escaped. Doubtlessly she's off subjecting innocents to torture right at this moment!_

Shadow shook his head. "This isn't good…"

_What do you mean, it's not good?! This will be the most fun we've had in so long!_

"Fun for _you_!" Shadow began to flip through the other assignments. "Really? Are Rouge and I the protagonists of X-files? They're having us set out on monster quests! Don't they have anything better to-"

_This is Halloween! Everybody make a scene! Aren't you scared~? Well that's just fine! _The Voice sang just barely on-key.

"Where did you even-" Shadow stopped and blinked, looking at the calendar on the office room's wall. Today was the 28th of October. The missions would continue through Halloween and hopefully the last would be completed on November 1st, Day of the Dead. "…Irony."

"What is…?" A voice came from behind him. Shadow turned, and there stood Rouge. He held up the faxes for her to see. Once her mind registered what she was looking at, gave a disappointed moan. "I was going to do some shopping today! How many are for me?"

"All of them. They're for us both. And we also received this." Shadow held up the smaller paper for her viewing.

Rouge read the paper, smiling a bit. "That sounds like a lot of fun! But we can't-"

"Actually, we can. But we may not get much sleep for awhile… These missions aren't our usual cup of tea."

The white bat looked thoughtful, deeply considering the flyer as she looked over it again. "Well… We haven't done anything fun like this for a long time, Shadow… I know we'll be alright. We're the best agents GUN has." She looked up, winking at him. "I'm sure there'll be time to fit sleep in somewhere."

"So you would like to go?" Shadow asked a bit slowly.

"Of course, sugar! Wait, what time is it in Kingdom Valley?"

The black and red hedgehog smiled and looked at his watch, briefly calculating. "4:08." Then he glanced at the flier.

4:30 PM.

"…"

Shadow rapidly swept his best friend off her feet. "Hold on, Rouge!" He took off, abandoning home and straining to break the sound barrier. Rouge held on for dear life, folding her ears back as tightly as she could for fear of the wind harming them.

"…Hey, I didn't get to change!" Rouge grinned, her voice almost lost under the roar of the air.

"You're dressed for a day out! That's good enough!" Her best friend skated on, jumping over and swerving around obstacles whenever necessary.

"Says _you_!"

"We don't have the time anyway!"

"There's always time for a woman to look her best!"

_Women. _The Voice scoffed. The black and red hedgehog didn't appear to hear him.

…To learn to love? What a waste of time when he was trapped in someone else's mind! Who was he trying to fool? The Child he resided within? No, he had not even told the Child, and the Child would never know. Love was agony; the Voice remembered. Love was pain…

Love was so frustrating when women were filled with vanity, snobbish behavior, thoughts of men and idolization of Hollywood stars. Men were drenched in dissatisfaction and lust and conceit and silly obsessions with professional sports. Mortals looked at the smallest, most insignificant details and wept and moaned. They fought one another like wild lions. They all created waste to destroy and corrupt all of nature's beauty. He didn't want to love any of it.

… Yet jealousy welled up inside of him. Shadow's love seemed so painless. He had friends. Many friends. Rouge, he saw every day. Love was effortless for him. If he ever fell _in_ love, the Voice assumed all would go well in the long run. It wasn't fair. Shadow the hedgehog, a mortal, had the world…

The Voice was confined to him. Planet Shadow was where he was stranded, and he couldn't breach the atmosphere. He had nothing.

"But there's not always time…" Shadow trailed off into laughter. Rouge giggled.

"Okay, okay! I guess I look alright." The bat continued to cling, daring to look around. However, when she glanced she found herself dizzy due to their astonishing speed that blurred trees, humans, buildings, and mountains into one. She shut her eyes.

"Good, because we're going to be late!" The hedgehog called above the wind, still pushing himself forward to go as quickly as possible. Away they sped to kingdom Valley to start their five-day adventure. The Voice suffered in silence, his heart hardening.

Rebellion was the _only_ path for him.

Shadow leapt onto train tracks. Rouge noticed a difference in the way his running felt and looked up. "Shadow!" Rouge gasped, her muscles seizing up. A train was speeding toward them, partly because of it's own speed and partly because of Shadow's. Shadow rocketed through a tunnel, continuing to speed right toward it. The headlights grew blinding. All in one second, Shadow ran through, made it to the other side, and squeezed between the train and the tunnel's exit. By mere inches, they both were spared the impact. Rouge felt her heart momentarily stop…

Shadow, however, didn't seem bothered by how close to death he had just come. He kept running. Rouge could see the dreary autumn appearance of Kingdom Valley all around her. Towering ruins and ancient woodlands intertwined. She was not really seeing it, however, for she was still very of the previous event. Still tense in his arms, he closed her eyes again, resting her head on Shadow's shoulder. The black and red hedgehog looked at his watch.

4:29.

Thank whatever higher entity there was for the natural portals that pocketed the Earth's space. If not for them, they never would have made it even remotely on time. The tunnel behind them was a perfect portal between Soleanna and Ivaysa, the nation of justice. It was much easier to take portals than try to get across the sea by plane or even with his air shoes.

He looked around for Weeping Willow road. It took several moments of navigating through ruins, wilderness, and few large lakes, but soon the road was found. A wooden stake with a sign labeled 'Weeping Willow' marked the street. He turned sharply down it as Rouge finally began to relax again. Now to find 68... 68... Being used to suburban and rural communities, he expected to see other manors. However, he found none. This made him realize that Greystone Manor was likely the only residence down the entire weather-worn stone path. Ruins quickly faded out of sight. This was a more forested area of kingdom valley; the cold grey sky served as a stark backdrop against the autumn-kissed trees. Some were bare, others had few leaves. Still others had yet to shed themselves of color. The grass seemed ready to die; all of nature was prepared for the frosty winter to come.

It seemed all too sudden that a large manor popped into sight at the end of the road. Shadow ran through the open, rusted old gates, and slid to a halt at the front door.

"Is this it?" Rouge asked, glancing about as Shadow set her down. The eerie manor loomed over them, a stone giant. In the distance, a giant eagle screeched. It was likely on the hunt for prey…

Shadow simply gave a nod. The road had ended. There was no other house he had seen. He reached up to knock on the rotting wooden door, using the stylish old door knocker that sat dead in the center of the door.

Rouge turned her attention to the door immediately, not wanting to seem distracted. For a moment, there was utter silence. Not even the wind swept through the trees to evoke their whispering voices. Shadow realized how silent even The Voice had been.

Then, the door slowly opened.

_**A/N: To be continued…**_


	2. Mad World

After the door had fully opened, Shadow and Rouge saw there was no one in sight. Rouge felt uncomfortable. Shadow moved to step in through the door to investigate…

A head popped into sight from behind the doorframe. Shadow tried not to look startled. "Oh, hey, you're here!" A blonde cat smiled, grinning through vampire fangs. Her black cape draped over her regular black and red striped sweater and well-worn jeans. Shadow and Rouge looked at the unfamiliar face with confusion. The teen had jade eyes and long hair. Her fur was a dark brown rather than blonde.

"Who're you?" Rouge asked, hoping not to sound rude to their welcoming host.

"I'm Isabel! No one special, really." She beamed with a half roll of her eyes. Then in a mock sinister tone of voice, she continued. "We've been expecting you…"

"Who?" Shadow asked.

"Oh, just everyone." Isabel laughed. Then she leaned closer and whispered to the two agents, "I was invited here too."

Shadow and Rouge looked at each other, both experiencing confusion.

"Well, are you gonna come in? Dinner's about to be served!"

"Well, we are here…" Shadow said slowly.

Rouge stepped inside with a polite smile to the blonde cat. Shadow followed her. Isabel shut the door behind them. "Hey Liz!" She called out. Every word uttered echoed down the dark corridors of the antique mansion. The place was nicely decorated, but filled with cobwebs.

"Yeah, Is?" A white cat and bat hybrid stepped out from a hall straight ahead, holding a spatula. She was redheaded, dressed as a vampire slayer. Or perhaps, some other sort of huntress of the supernatural.

"Shadow and Rouge are here!"

"Great. And so is Sonic. And so is Tails. And all the other people. And the grumpy red guy. I'm just here frying eggs. Do they want blood and flesh?"

Shadow and Rouge looked alarmed. "Yeah, probably!" The cat spoke for them, "And I want _extra_ blood!"

"I hate that you had to be a vampire this year." Liz sighed.

"And you look like you really wanna kill me…" The blonde answered the redhead, laughing nervously. Then she turned to the guests. Shadow had an eyebrow raised, awaiting an explanation. "It's a Halloween dinner. Not real blood and flesh or anything… Just a nice chicken dinner and grape juice. And egg eyeballs. We got the recepies from Betty Croaker!"

"That frog who does all that food stuff." Liz clarified.

"Yeah, and I know I've been talking _a lot_! I'm so _so so so so __**sorry**_! I'll shut up soon, don't worry! I'm just your host anyway! And she's the other host, and my best friend! And we're both the cooks!" Is covered her mouth. "I'm still talking… I'm so sorry! I'll shut up now!"

"And I could use some help." Liz stated tiredly.

"_Coming_!" Is called quickly, then she back to the guests again. "The-dining-room-is-on-your-right-after-going-down-the-hall-it's-the-last-door! Actually, the _double_ doors!" Then she ran to the kitchen to help her friend.

"…Well, she was friendly." Rouge said. Shadow sort of shrugged in response. He was wondering how it was that the host of the party was invited to the party. Invited by who? Maybe it was Liz… "Well, come on! I'm sure everyone else is in there already!" The lovely white bat jabbed a thumb in the direction of the dinning hall, then took Shadow's hand to lead the way. Taken from his thoughts, Shadow followed, eying the décor. This was the perfect place for a Halloween party. It didn't need fake skeletons or rats. The place was so old it felt haunted all on its own. High ceilings. Fancy chandeliers. This place seemed to have it all. Old paintings hung crooked. Dark, tattered curtains lined every window, many blocking out the light all together. He even glanced through an open door and saw a record player and ancient radio.

Little did he know, the Voice was also interested in their surroundings. Highly interested. Since he uttered not a word, however, Shadow quite assumed he was simply observing him. Maybe he was waiting for Shadow to make a mistake so he would have something to pick at…

But it was nothing of the sort.

Rouge tread lightly across the red and gold carpet. Shadow stepped ahead of her to open the double doors to the dining hall. Rouge smiled at him. "Such a gentleman!" She remarked teasingly.

"Hey, look who it is!" Sonic stood from his place at the table, waving over at Shadow and Rouge.

"Hey, sugar!" Rouge greeted him, walking over to the table. It was nicely decorated, all the silverware and dishes set in place atop a satin tablecloth. Shadow eyed the large party, then stopped.

Rouge walked over to one of three empty seats as everyone greeted her and Shadow. Isabel was right. Everyone was there. Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, Shade, Cream, Cheese, Blaze, Marine, Silver, the Chaotix, Big the Cat, and even Omega. Charmy, Marine, and Cream were all together. Cream seemed to be slightly intimidated by the orange racoon and Charmy was too impatient to have food to care either way. Amy was leaning over the table in deep conversation with Blaze and Shade. Sonic was having a nit-pick argument with Knuckles while Tails listened in amusement. Vector was asking Silver about how business worked in the future while Espio was trying at the same time to talk to them about martial arts. Omega was trying to process every conversation at once. She waved to them all as she walked.

However, there was one unfamiliar face at the table. A black hedgehog, her face partially covered by the hooded cloak she wore, sat next to Espio, who was dressed in traditional ninja garb. Rouge would have felt out of place not wearing any sort of costume, but half of their friends were simply dressed as themselves. The white bat made her way over to the stranger as everyone else went back to socialization, deciding to introduce herself. "Hi there, I'm Rouge. What's your name?" She offered her a hand to shake.

Shadow gaped.

The solid black hedgehog looked a bit shyly at Rouge's hand, but she reached out and took it. "I-I'm Sarah."

Shadow started forward, ignoring everyone else. "It's nice to meet you, Sarah!" Rouge replied cheerfully.

"What are you doing here?"

Rouge and Sarah both turned to look at the black and red hedgehog quickly walking toward them.

"Sh-shadow!" Sarah stood up in surprise, her hood slipping off entirely. "Y-you're here…"

"But what are _you_ doing here?"

Rouge stared at Shadow. "Do you know her?"

"Well, I'm-" Sarah quietly began.

"She's 666." He recognized her well. He had seen her before, trying to torment others. In fact, she'd tried to torture him before as well. She'd tried to kill before. She delighted in her own pain. Psychotic Sarah. He could never, ever forget her face…

But she was the same as he was. An experiment. Part of him would always pity her; she was an experiment gone wrong. But he had no time for that now. He would have to recapture her for GUN.

Rouge blinked. "What?"

…

At that moment, Shadow realized Rouge hadn't read any of the mission statements. She didn't have a clue what this meant. Telling her in front of Project 666 would be problematic, and it would probably ruin the dinner party. Sarah seemed to shrink at being called 666. Shadow hardly noticed, though he did see her looking at him fearfully.

Since when was she ever fearful of him?

"She's one of my sisters." He said carefully.

"Oh, well hi!" Rouge laughed, a very mild feeling of awkwardness lingering within her. Shadow's reaction seemed very strange to her… She brushed it off, however. "That's even better!"

"Y-yeah…" Sarah smiled nervously. She sat down, slipping her hood back over her face and hiding her violet eyes. "It's really great."

"Why don't you sit next to her, Shadow? You both should have a lot of catching up to do. Am I right?" Rouge smiled.

She clearly thought they were on good terms. This clearly was not the case, but she seemed blinded to it. Shadow slowly nodded, unable to force a smile. He took the chair next to Sarah, wondering how to pass the evening pleasurably sitting next to a suspiciously silent, masochistic psychopath. Rouge sat on the other side of him. Sarah glanced over at Shadow, then down at her empty plate. She soon looked about to speak, but Espio tapped her shoulder. She turned.

"I feel I am not upholding any etiquette by not speaking with you. You haven't held much conversation since your arrival, from my observation."

"O-oh, well, I'm not much of a conversationalist." She answered. Shadow eyed her.

"Maybe not, but you shouldn't feel left out during a celebration. Unless you meditate, it becomes a burden to stay on the outside of social occasions." Espio answered.

Sarah gave a slow nod. "Right…"

"I'm sure anyone here would be willing to talk with you. There should be no outsiders here."

A very small smile curved her lips. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Espio nodded to her respectfully.

Shadow was puzzling over Sarah's behavior when Is and Liz burst through the dining hall doors toting a service cart. "You're food is ready! It's _ready_!"

Charmy sprang from his seat, buzzing over immediately. "_**Food!**_"

Liz raised her spatula against him. "_No_! Sit! We'll bring it to you!" Charmy dodged the hit that never came and zipped quickly back to his seat, sitting with his hands folded and fidgeting. Is stumbled over herself clumsily to try to serve dinner as quickly as possible. She darted to and fro, barely managing not to spill or drop anything. Liz helped her, though a bit slower and not quite so desperately.

"You want some help?" Sonic looked up at the two felines.

The ginger bat-hybrid shook her head. "Nah."

"Nope, we've got it!" Is chimed. After a moment, all the food was laid out, and everyone but Omega was served. Since Omega could not eat, Liz had scribbled him a picture of a chicken dinner. She felt a bit bad that she had nothing else to offer him. The robot had taken the picture, but did not understand what to do with it. He slipped it inside of his storage tray.

Dinner was interestingly shaped into spooky shapes. Red grape juice filled every cup. The eggs looked very much like eyes. Knuckles had two glasses rather than one. "Go ahead and eat up! Oh, wait!" Is turned to Liz and gestured to a small basket sitting on the service cart. Liz nodded, and they both began to hand out slips of paper.

"Don't show anyone." Liz ordered everyone.

"Blimey, what are these for Sheila?" Marine asked.

"It's a murder mystery game! One of you, or us, is the murderer!" Is exclaimed. "It's a really fun game. That's why there's an empty seat. You look at only your paper and then you try to figure out who murdered someone and who that someone was that was murdered!"

"Wait, doesn't someone get murdered?" Liz asked.

Is stopped …

"It doesn't just start with an empty chair."

"Oh, yeah, you're right…"

"Do we have to start over?" Charmy asked.

Is looked bashful. "No, just ignore the empty chair."

"Sounds like fun!" Sonic grinned. "I'm always up for a good game!" Tails nodded in agreement.

"Of course you are…" Shadow looked at Sonic.

Sonic caught Shadow's comment, returning his gaze. "Hey, Shadow's always as game as I am!"

"What?" The black and red hedgehog looked at Sonic with a bit of disbelief.

"He can't handle any competition."

"Yes I can!" Shadow scoffed. Tails grinned a bit, listening in on the silly argument.

Rouge smirked slightly. "You can't handle much."

Shadow looked to Rouge. "Who's side are you on?" A smile started to appear.

"The honest side, Shadow."

"I thought you'd be on my side, bat girl."

"Well she's not, she's on mine, for now!" Sonic gave his trademark grin.

"I don't want to be murdered, Mister Knuckles!" Cream huddled closer to the red echidna with discomfort. Cheese huddled closer to her.

"Aw, don't worry mate. It's just a game!" Marine smiled at the seven year old.

"Are you sure, Miss Marine?"

"She's right. It's just a game, kid." Knuckles smiled in a laid-back manner. "No one would really hurt you. And if they did, you can bet I'd give them a pounding to remember."

Cream seemed a bit better after hearing this. She relaxed a bit. "Oh, alright. Thank you Mister Knuckles. Thank you Miss Marine."

"It's not a problem! If a no-good bloomin' bloke got a hold of ya I would right pummel 'im too!" Marine declared. She began to go on, talking about all the squabbles she had had on the seven seas and how she'd handled every one of 'them blokes' and had them begging for mercy. Cream listened to her, lingering between confusion and concern over if anyone had been hurt too badly.

Meanwhile, Sonic and Shadow continued their petty arguing. Sarah tried to ignore them. Silver got involved in the argument, and the argument between a debate between the three hedgehogs, and Amy, who was backing Sonic all the way. Rouge began to back Shadow a bit more. Shade watched this exchange, her eyes darting back and fourth. Blaze sighed. Vector also decided to watch. Omega continued to process what all was going on, and Espio withdrew into himself to meditate. Sarah wondered how he managed. Charmy and Big simply ate their food. As for Is and Liz, they withdrew from the scene to go eat after handing every card out.

Shade, Blaze, Vector, Tails, Big, and Sarah looked at their cards, immediately curious. The others were too wrapped up in conversation, food, and debate to look. Omega had no capacity to care. Eventually, however, every card was opened. One murder, one victim, and eighteen investigators. On every card were instructions. Shadow's said to go upstairs and take a look around before coming back to the dining room. He was neither the murderer nor the victim. Rouge's was the same, only she was to visit the cellar. Thus, after each finished his or her meal, everyone excused themselves politely from the table and went to follow the instructions. Shadow looked at his watch before going. It was still a long time until he and Rouge would have to start their missions. He realized that this dinner was his breakfast and not his dinner at all. It seemed odd. Outside, the light was quickly dying. Through the windows, he could see it was already very dark…

He was finished with his meal before Rouge. Sarah had finished hers even faster and gone off. The black and red hedgehog nearly expected she was the murderer, but being that this was only a game, it wasn't all that likely. He climbed upstairs. There was more strange writing on the card, much like what had been on the flier. Going down a hall, he came to pass a lever…

_I wonder what it does._

_It can't hurt to find out. _Curiously, he grabbed the handle, pulling it. The floor suddenly dropped from underneath him. He found himself sliding rapidly down a chute. His eyes widened in shock. _What did I just do?!_

_Stay calm. _The Voice said.

_Where is this taking me? _The slide seemed endless.

_Just try to relax, it's the house of wax~_

_Songs don't help right now! _Shadow tried to stop the slide, bracing his hands firmly against the sides, but the slope was too steep. The only thing he managed was to make his hands hurt. Finally, the slide curved off to be flatter. He tumbled off it onto the ground, hitting his head. He groaned, rubbing it.

_How many times are you going to hit your head like that?_

Shadow glared off into the dark, then pushed the comment out of his mind. He looked around.

It looked like a very old science lab. Possibly the kind that a mad scientist would use. There were no eyeballs in jars or anything else grotesque, but something about it was still unsettling. There was writing all over the walls.

The Voice was reading every word.

Shadow turned, looking for a way out. Upon first glance, there only seemed to be one way out: back up. He figured he could manage that with a running start, but a single misstep would send him falling back down and might leave him seriously injured. He thought for a moment. Not everyone was a supersonic hedgehog. There had to be another way out of this laboratory.

He looked for another trap door. None. He looked at the writing on the walls in hope that it had a better answer… It was the same writing that had been on the card and the flyer. He couldn't read it.

But the Voice could. The Voice silently soaked in every word with unmatched eagerness.

He was about to be freed.

_**A/N: Can the Voice really be released? To be continued next chapter!**_


	3. Demon's Puzzle

All sorts off worries flooded into Shadow's mind. Mainly, the thought occurred to him that Project 666 may decide to leave at any time. He needed to know where she was so he could complete his mission. He also worried over if anyone else was in danger of falling through the floor. A tear in the wallpaper caught his eye for some reason. Wondering if maybe it concealed a hidden door, he advanced toward it.

Indeed, there was something there. He opened the panel. It seemed to be a the storage for the mansion's circuit breakers. But below them there were some glowing crystals. Shadow looked at them, momentarily ignoring the 40-50 breakers above.

_They're not radioactive. Go on and pick them up._

Assuming they were safe, Shadow did so, and wondered what on earth they were doing there.

_Switch the 32__nd__ breaker on. _

_What? Why? _Shadow began to feel suspicious.

_Trust me… this once…_

Shadow looked at the neon pink label on the breaker. 'Defuse'. What was that supposed to mean? He wondered if it would out the power of the entire mansion, not that the mansion really seemed to be using much electricity. Still, he felt the others would be very unhappy if he did make the power go out.

_I don't know. _Shadow answered. He felt a sudden wave of rage surge out from the Voice. Utter fury. Shadow flinched, seldom aware of the Voice's emotions at all. Feeling something so strong from him was rare. In fact, he wasn't sure he could remember the last time he'd felt anything strong from him. Shadow questioned why the Voice would want so badly for that breaker to be switched on. Between him and the lingering thought of 666 leaving while he was wasting time in a hidden laboratory, he wasn't sure what to do. It wasn't that he felt sorry his answer to the Voice. It wasn't that he was fearful of the Voice's wrath; the Voice could do nothing to him. But somehow he felt maybe he should listen to him this time. How big of a deal would a power outage be? There had been candles everywhere. Dinner was over. They'd all be going home soon afterward. He looked at the breakers for another moment to see if, for some reason, any of them would activate a way out…

Suddenly, sharp agony stabbed through his back. He tried to turn to see who was there or what had stabbed him, but all he saw was a bit of hanging metal before his vision blurred horribly. He held his head, tearing away from whoever or whatever it was, falling against the wall. With blurry vision, he couldn't really make anything out. Something gave him the impression of a machine. He quickly looked toward the circuit breakers. The colors of the labels still stood out clearly.

Only one was bright pink. Maybe a power-out would kill the machine. He quickly flicked the switch up before being stabbed again. Instantly, lost consciousness.

"Everybody! Everybody, look!" Vector and Espio came running into the room. Everyone had already gone and done as their cards demanded of them. Rouge had been starting to wonder where Shadow was. At Vector's calling, she and the others all looked up. Horror shone in her eyes, as well as those of all the others.

In Vector's arms was an unconscious Shadow the Hedgehog. He was bleeding. Rouge dashed to his side.

"Shads!" Sonic gasped.

Marine quickly covered Cream's eyes before she could see. "Blimey!" She exclaimed. "What happened to the bloke?"

"What? Wh-what's going on?" Cream asked.

"Is he alright?" Blaze asked.

Charmy buzzed over as Rouge examined the wound. Others gathered around to see if he was alright. "Wow, Shadow sure took the victim thing seriously, right? He's the victim, right? He makes a good victim even though he's super strong and super fast! I bet Sonic couldn't be that good of a victim, right Sonic? You're too super fast, and you'd kill the murderer first with a powpowpow!" Charmy spoke at hyper speed, twirling and jabbing his fists in the air.

Sonic ignored Charmy, waiting to see what Rouge would say. Rouge heaved a sigh of relief after a moment of checking his pulse and whatnot. "He's alive. It's not even that serious of a wound, even though it is deep. It seems to be healing up already."

"Confirmed. Shadow's life signs are stable." Omega droned.

Everyone sighed as well. Marine uncovered Cream's eyes. "Phew!"

"It looks so painful." Cream spoke softly.

"Don't worry Cream, Shadow will be fine. He pulled through at the hospital that one time, remember?" Tails smiled.

Cream nodded, smiling back. "Right!"

Shade looked on with her small eyes. "Does he need medical attention? I could get some things for him."

"No, thank you Shade." Rouge snatched a few cloth napkins from the table. "These will do fine. He heals up fast… He should be better by this evening."

"He's lucky…" Silver remarked.

"But it's night now." Big's ears flattened as he hugged Froggy.

"I mean evening at home."

Big looked dumbfounded as Rouge tied up Shadow's wound. Once she finished, Vector carried him to a cushioned window seat and gently laid him there. Rouge followed with Espio alongside. "Where did you boys find him?"

"We found him on the floor in one of the halls upstairs. No signs of struggle or anything, though we did find a trapdoor." Espio answered.

"That's right! The Chaotix detective agency investigated the whole thing!" Vector boasted a bit.

"I didn't!" Charmy protested loudly as Is and Liz walked through the door. "I had to go investigate the kitchen! It was so boring in there, but there were a bunch of knives. And lots of pans! And Is and Liz were in there and they gave me a cookie! It was a great cookie, and they said it was almost dessert time and they have so many good desserts to give us and mmmmmmmm the cookie was so good! Chocolate chip is my favorite! And it was even made with flower!"

"We didn't give you the cookie, you snatched it." Liz twitched.

Espio continued more solemnly. "…We carefully opened the trap door. Our guess is that it would lead down to a cellar, but we didn't go down because of Shadow's injury and we didn't want to leave him untreated long. Not to mention, it was a steep chute leading down, and not steps. If we went down, it's uncertain what we would have needed to do to get back up. Other than the trap door, though, there was nothing suspicious."

"Except for this!" Vector showed Rouge a small glowing crystal. It was fragmented. Rouge frowned. She glanced over to the others who all were simply watching in concern and confusion. Looking back to the crocodile and chameleon, the white bat dropped her arms limply at her sides. "But I investigated the cellar! It was on my card. It was dark in there, but I looked hard and I didn't see anything strange in the ceiling like a chute…"

The two detectives looked at each other. "Then your guess is as good as ours." The chameleon sighed.

"I could go down the chute and investigate." Silver offered. "If someone hurt Shadow, their act of injustice mustn't go unpunished!

"Wait, what's going on?" Is asked, coming forward. "Someone got hurt…?"

"Someone hurt Shadow." Knuckles grumbled. He didn't like this…

"Really? For real?" Liz asked. She received nods.

"But I didn't let anyone through the door! I mean, no one extra. It was just all of us! All of…" Is looked around, then stopped.

"Someone's missing."

Everyone glanced around. Amy put a hand to her mouth in thought of who all had been there. Sonic scratched his head, finding it unbelievable that anyone from their group would have hurt Shadow.

Indeed, though, someone was missing. Either that someone was hurt like Shadow, or they had been the one to hurt Shadow. Espio and Rouge both realized at once who the missing soul was. They looked at each other.

"Sarah."

…

"Isabel! What exits does this place have?" Rouge's head snapped in the blonde cat's direction.

"Just the front door…" Isabel cringed.

"Espio, you use your camouflage to glance around outside, then guard the front door! Sonic, Blaze, help me find Sarah!" Rouge ordered. The lavender feline and blue hedgehog nodded, understanding the seriousness of the situation.

"I'll go with Vector to the trap door to check that out!" Silver volunteered.

"And I'll take you!" Vector agreed.

"I'll watch over Shadow." Amy said.

"I'll go outside with Espio." Knuckles stepped to Espio's side.

Rouge began to run out the doors. "Sonic, you take downstairs. Blaze, second floor! I'll check the high places!"

"Wait for me!" Tails cried, following after Rouge.

Espio turned invisible, dashing to the front door to guard it. He glanced outside, but left the searching work to Knuckles. Sonic sped down the halls. Blaze charged up the stairs with Silver and Vector. She passed the trapdoor, leaving Vector and Silver in the corridor. Silver pulled the lever to open the door back up, floating down the chute with levitation. Rouge and Tails flew up. Tails searched the rafters. Rouge went to the attic. Big and Omega went to the lobby. The large cat called as Omega scanned the premises with utmost care.

"Sarah!"

"Sarah?!"

"Sarah, where are you?"

"_Sarah!_"

Moments later, Shadow awoke quite suddenly. He bolted upright. "Where is she?" He asked breathlessly.

"Relax, Shadow." Shade said calmly, trying to comfort him.

Amy looked up at him in puzzlement, her Piko Piko hammer out and ready for use. "What? Who?"

"666."

"Who's that?"

"Sarah. Where's Sarah?" Shadow asked urgently, getting to his feet.

Amy tried to coax him back into sitting, but he shook his head. "Everyone's looking for her. She never came back." The orange echidna nodded in agreement with the pink hedgehog.

Shadow growled. "That _psychotic_…!" He began to skate away.

"Hey, _wait_!" Amy called after him. She looked between him, Marine, Charmy, and Cream. Liz and Is were cleaning up the table in preparation for dessert in case anyone was still in the mood after this. Shade shrugged as she made eye contact, feeling like she couldn't be of much use at the moment. The rose hedgehog huffed and went after Shadow, deciding the kids would definitely be alright with the two older felines and the warrior echidna there.

The black and red hedgehog saw his blue counterpart zipping from one room to another. Downstairs was almost entirely covered. He bolted up the stairs. Blaze was there, looking through all the rooms to the left. He turned right, flying down a hall of mirrors. The ghostly image of a stranger flashed. Shadow slammed to a halt, but saw no one in the mirror. No one but himself and Amy Rose as she ran up to him. "What happened?!" She asked.

"I don't know…" Shadow shook his head quickly, disregarding the strange experience he'd just had. "But I have to find her!" He began running again. It was then that he thought to ask the Voice. _What happened?_

But the Voice gave no answer. Something didn't feel right to Shadow. There was a sense of emptiness and paranoia that wasn't there before. He brushed it off, assuming he was simply too concerned with finding 666, Sarah, either before she was hurt, or she hurt someone else, or she simply disappeared before he could take her into custody.

The Voice was probably just still sour from earlier… He darted in and out of rooms, checking every corner. Amy looked for secret passages.

43 bedrooms, 26 bathrooms, one kitchen, one dining hall, one ballroom, one basement, one cellar, one laboratory, and one attic later, there was no sign of Sarah. Everyone gathered back in the lobby area.

"Did anyone find anything?" Shadow nearly snapped.

"Nope!" Sonic shook his head.

"Nothing upstairs." Blaze said. Knuckles merely shook his head in response, as did Tails.

"Scanners indicate Sarah is not on the premises." Omega stated. Shadow clenched a fist.

"There was some blood on the wall where the chute lead to, and some sort of machine coming down from the ceiling." Silver reported.

"That's what attacked me." Shadow answered. "Someone must've been operating it… Somehow…" Silver looked thoughtful but had no answer.

Rouge swooped down before any reply could be given. "I've got some bad news. There was a trapdoor in the attic that lead down some steps. They went all the way down to the first floor and there was a backdoor there."

"Definitely not good." Shadow scoffed. "She probably took that exit. She can't be here." He shook his head.

"What if maybe she saw Shadow hurt and got scared, so she bailed?" Amy asked.

"She's not that cowardly. Rouge," Shadow paused, then pulled Rouge aside, whispering. "I should have told you the instant 666 left, but the very first mission that GUN sent us last night was to retrieve her."

"It was?" Rouge could now see a problem. "But why?"

"Not now. She's gone. She could be miles away now. We need to decide if we want to try to track her now or start over from scratch. I already had a feeling that trying to capture her would put our other missions in jeopardy. It could take weeks before we catch her, and our other missions require our immediate attention. But… she's dangerous. Like me. If she wants to be dangerous, we'll be putting others in danger either way we go."

Rouge tried to think. "Our missions weren't supposed to begin until night. Is there a way to track her down and reach her before the day is done?"

"Only with luck." Shadow answered. Rouge shook her head.

"Alright, then. The other missions come first."

Shadow gave a nod, but felt reluctant. He moved back over to the group. "Clearly, Sarah's gone. We'll have to find her later."

"Why not now? I'd help." Sonic frowned. Silver, Shade, and Blaze all nodded in agreement, but Shadow shook his head.

"Anyone interested in dessert…?" Liz asked.

"_**Me! Mememememememememe!**_" Charmy buzzed right over again. Is offered him some cake off the service cart. The little bee dug right in. Espio sighed.

Tails went up to the cart too. "Might as well. There's no sense in turning this into a funeral. If we can't look now…" He took a few cookies.

"This is something Rouge and I have to do alone. I hope you all understand." Shadow looked solemn. He was still worried. All the others nodded, showing their understanding, and one by one, most of them decided upon having desert after all."

"Is the game over?" Cream asked Is.

"Um… anyone still want to play?" The blond looked around.

She received a unanimous and flat, "No."

"Well, everyone turn in your cards then." Liz sighed. She and Is began collecting cards. Is read through them.

"…Um, who was the victim?"

No one uttered a word.

"Who was the murderer…? Did I get _every_ card?"

There was utter silence. They all looked around at each other. Rouge and Shadow found themselves questioning… A murder mystery game where both the key cards were missing. The host was invited to the party. There were odd trap doors. Shadow had been attacked by a machine. Sarah was missing…

None of it made sense, but this mystery would have to remain unsolved, for now. There was other important work to be done. Still, the questions lingered in the backs of their minds. One in particular.

Was someone toying with them?

_**A/N: Oooh, another cliffhanger! What's going on? Next chapter to be posted… SOON! Stay tuned!**_


	4. Sundown, Lights Out

Rouge flipped through the assignments, leaning back in her office chair. She sighed. "So this is it, huh? We're investigating strange creatures?"

Shadow nodded. "Some were sighted, some haven't been caught yet. But a few were shot down, so we just have to do some follow-up work."

Rouge nodded, getting up and going to her room to change into work-appropriate clothing. "I'm getting ready to go. We'd better get this done as soon as possible! We have a suspect to catch!" Shadow gave a nod, getting his gun, just in case he should need it. He stored the gun and the assignment papers in his hammerspace for safekeeping. After a few moments, Rouge came back down. "Ready! Are you?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." Shadow answered. He hoped dearly that 666 would be found soon after they took care of the other nine assignments.

Rouge picked up his concern and gave him a friendly nudge. "We'll be okay. We can do anything so long as we've got each other."

Shadow smiled at her, appreciating her encouragement. She was always there for him. "Thank you."

Rouge winked, slipping out the front door. Shadow followed quickly behind her, shutting the door behind them. "Where to, Shadow?"

"GUN says the first was shot down in Grand Metropolis."

"Then should we drive?" Rouge took out her car keys.

Shadow shook his head with a smile. "Running will be a much more efficient use of time. Besides, we have a suspect to catch."

Rouge laughed a bit. "Oh, right. Then I suppose you'll have to carry me again." Shadow obliged, picking her up, then was off toward Metropolis at top speed.

As they reached the grand city, the sun was starting to sink below the horizon. Shadow considered how strange it was to watch such a thing happen twice in one day. The regular road cut off, transforming into an electronic platform. The futuristic city rose up from hundreds-maybe thousands of feet out of the ground. Skyscrapers towered over the platform roadways, reaching toward the gloomy sky. Hover cars traveled along. It was a grand sight. But surrounding the city entrance was a vast graveyard. Tombstones cluttered the roadway on both sides. There was no place for the dead within the city limits, so they provided a forbidding welcome. Shadow shot through, paying them no mind. He simply focused on keeping a secure hold on Rouge and finding the location of town hall. The cold wind stung their skin and fur as it brushed by. Rouge wondered if she should have chosen something a tad warmer to wear. Shadow pretended not to feel the chill or bite. After navigating for three minutes, they reached the ground of Grand Metropolis. Down here, it was much less impressive. Lights flickered. The sky could hardly be seen. Light filtered down, but barely. All looked dark, a bit dreary. Everything looked very industrial. This area was not Grand Metropolis. It was simply known as the Metropolis Zone.

It also gave a whole knew meaning to 'downtown'. It was rundown, on grounds of dirt and iron. Cobwebs graced the corners. The city had been built off one of Robotnick's old bases as a symbol of triumph against tyranny. They had turned something unwanted and ugly into something beautiful…

For the most part.

Town hall was only accessible on foot if they first passed through the Metropolis zone. From there, they then traveled up floating platforms to a great, grand square platform, complete with potted plants and trees and lovely fountains. It was a marvel of technology… However, not so marvelous today. Caution and crime scene tape wrapped around the entire square, leaving only a small path for citizens to go through to get to the town hall's main building which hosted a clock tower. Behind the tape, a force field was set up, containing a large lump covered in blue tarps. Two officers of law guarded the force field, talking with each other, yet carefully eying anyone whom passed by. Shadow and Rouge approached the two.

"Officers!" Rouge greeted, taking out her badge. "Agents Rouge and Shadow here."

One of the officers carefully looked at her badge to make sure it was genuine before nodding. Shadow felt respect for him for taking his job so seriously. To him it seemed the police weren't always thorough in their work. They did not ask Shadow for his badge, but it would be a waste of time since Rouge had clearly acknowledged him as working with her. "Miss Rouge, you weren't supposed to be here for a few more hours."

"Sorry, boys. There was a change of plans. We're having to do some rush work now and we need to gain any time we can."

Shadow nodded. "Can you give us any details that could help us move this investigation along?"

The officers were curious as to what was going on, but knowing it was likely top secret work, they did not ask. It was not their business to know. The officer who had spoken earlier continued to speak as his partner took the force field down. "Yes, we have a bit, but we're not sure what to make of it. This creature flew into the city and landed here in the square. It started to attack people; almost killed the mayor. We feared something like this would cause mass hysteria, so we had all witnesses sworn to secrecy and covered up the beast after we shot it down."

"And it's absolutely dead?" The black and red hedgehog stepped over to the covered corpse.

"Absolutely." The second officer nodded.

"Does it have a species? Could it be some sort of natural genetic malfunction?" Rouge asked.

"Well…" The officer glanced over at the creature as Shadow carefully drew back the covers. He stopped, staring at the face of the beast. "It's nothing we've ever seen before."

Rouge took a few steps closer to get a better look, shuddering in utmost horror. The creature they beheld was some sort of giant bird. However, it was no ordinary bird. Its feathers were both vibrant maroon and pitch black, and out of its wings protruded knifelike claws. It's beak was long and sharp, and…

_What sort of bird has teeth? _Shadow stared. He expected an answer from the Voice, but none was given. Alligator like teeth emerged from out of the bird's beak. The bird likewise had claws emerging from its long, tattered tail feathers, which much resembled that of a phoenix. But claws and 5 inch talons were not the only aspects of the creature that made it strange. The bird's feathers covered only it's tails and wings. The rest of it was furry, and it sported an almost-reptilian shaped head.

The black and red hedgehog knew better than to simply touch a dead animal. He turned to the officers. "Would you happen to have disposable gloves?"

The second officer nodded to him, handing him a pair. Shadow slipped them on over his gloves. He didn't care to have his personal gloves contaminated, after all; they were not trash. He tilted the creature's head up by moving its beak, then gently laid it back down and pried open one of its eyes.

Rouge gasped. Shadow flinched. The creature's eyes were not that of a feral animal. They were eyes that looked much like their own, but rosy pink. Shadow stared a moment, thinking. Feral animals never had eyes of that type. Might this beast have been intelligent? If so, why had it stupidly attacked a city? It was the size of an ape, but if it were smart it should have known the power of weaponry to be an immediate threat.

Shadow looked away, shutting its eyes. He stepped back and slipped off the disposable gloves carefully. "So… which direction did it come from?" Rouge asked, trying to push the thought out of her mind that the beast seemed to be some sort of mutant experiment. Her best friend went to throw away the contaminated plastic in his hands.

"It came from the south, slightly in the western direction. We also found this attached to its foot." The first officer handed over an evidence bag. Rouge took it. It was an identification tag.

Thea 42534.

_So it was an experiment. _Rouge thought, frowning heavily. Whoever was responsible for letting such a thing loose needed to be shut down. Seeing no other hints or information, Rouge handed the bag back. "Thank you officers. I think that's all we can do here." Rouge sighed.

Shadow looked up.

"You're welcome, Miss. Our pleasure. You're just fortunate we had the evidence on hand and all, since you came so early." The second officer answered, glancing toward the setting sun as it momentarily peeked through the clouds. Rouge gave a nod.

"Good day to you." Shadow also nodded to them, stepping over to Rouge's side and taking her back the way they came. After the platform took them back to the dark depths of Metropolis Zone, Shadow looked at her. "What was in that bag?"

Rouge's eyes clouded a bit. "An identification tag. It had a name. I think that bird was a serious experiment… And those eyes…" She shuddered. "…Shadow, she might have started out like you."

"She?"

"It said 'Thea'…" Rouge trailed off. Concern twisted Shadow's expression. To imply that this 'Thea' had once been an individual and not just an animal… it was nothing less than a horror. Even such horrible mutilative experimentation to an animal was inhumane. For it to happen to a person… What sort of monsters had worked in that laboratory? They had turned a girl into a mindless beast. Or perhaps she had been forced through too much, and unable to manage any longer, she had attacked Grand Metropolis knowing they would end her life. Any which way, such brutal research didn't appear to have any positive benefits. There was no justifying it, even 'for the greater good of science'.

Shadow sighed. "Then I hope she's at rest… I can't help feeling sorry for her."

Rouge nodded. It was rapidly getting darker. The sun was setting now. She put on her Agent's attitude and looked at Shadow. She couldn't let her emotions get in the way now. "What's next?"

Shadow took out the assignment papers. He handed the one they'd just finished to Rouge. She figured he wanted her to fill it out at the first chance she got. His eyes scanned over the next piece of paper, somewhat straining to read in the dim light. "Bristow." He muttered.

"That's not too far from home." Rouge's ears pinned back. "That one was shot down too?"

Shadow nodded in reply, "From a helicopter."

Rouge straightened up. "Well, here we go." Shadow took her into his arms again, racing in the direction of home.

The trip took an hour and three minutes between portals. Roughly, they saved an hours time. Bristow was a mere 15 to 20 minute trip from Rouge's house, if Shadow carried her. The short distance seemed too close for comfort's sake. This time, whatever creature there was had attacked someone on the outskirts of the city. The report said that a civilian had called the police for help. After searching about for five minutes through the moonlight, Shadow came to a halt on the rocky terrain of the wilderness. There, again, was caution tape, and flagged markers, but this time, the creature was nowhere to be found. Rouge looked a bit worried, but she knew it was possible that the beast had been taken in for examination. Some detectives were at the scene, doing all they could to solve the puzzle that laid before them. Flashlights revealed what little there was of the scene, highlighting it out of the darkness. Shadow set Rouge down. "Excuse us!" He spoke out.

The detectives looked up, shining their flashlights on the two agents. Shadow and Rouge shielded their eyes. "Yes?" The female detective of the group answered. She lowered her light a bit so not to entirely blind them both.

"Agents Shadow and Rouge. We were called about a creature's attack on this area." Shadow whipped out his badge, showing her.

The female aimed her light, glanced at it, then nodded before lowering her light entirely. The other two detectives lowered theirs as well. "You weren't supposed to be here for awhile."

"Yeah, we know." Rouge said tiredly. "Something else came up. It's important that we get these cases solved as soon as possible. What do you know about this attack?"

The detectives' eyes widened. "There are more?" The female seemed afraid. Rouge nodded urgently, ushering her go on with her report. "Well," the detective continued.

"A man called around midnight last night. He said he was being chased by a lion. So, they sent out a helicopter since it was easiest. They had tranquillizers, but then the men saw that… it wasn't a lion. It was something else… We're on the eastern side of the city, and tracks seem to indicate that it came from the east." The detective said quietly. "The men also said that the lion seemed to be pushing the lake water somehow, and he was driving it at the man." She pointed behind her to a half-emptied water reservoir.

Rouge's mouth fell open a little. "Are you sure it did…?"

"The men insisted on it." The detective seemed unsure. "But there was evidence this morning of water being spilt in vast amounts away from the lake. It's dried up since, though.

Rouge frowned quite a bit. "I think this calls for a meeting with the chief of police. Could you tell us where the local station is?"

"Yes, it's near the center of town."

"Thank you." Shadow said respectfully, picking Rouge up once again and rocketing toward the city lights and into the center of Bristow. The station was fairly easy to find. They both entered, showed their badges, and within a few moments, they were in a small white room, looking at another lump under sheets on a table. A scientist and the chief of the police stood with them as shadow pulled back the sheets once again. The creature was indeed lion-like. However, there was a very distinct reptile-like quality to it, and the tail was like a lizard. It had very small red wings sprouting from its back and a snake-like tongue. The wings seemed they would be inadequate to fly with. Green fur, yellow scales. The golden eyes were much like that of the bird's. Shadow didn't even have to touch the creature. He read the identification tag on the beast's foreleg then covered the dead thing back up.

"What can you tell us about this creature?" Rouge asked both of the men.

The broad-shouldered chief of police started before the scientist could open his mouth. "He's like an alien. Came from the east, apparently. My men insisted he was pushing the lake full force at a man with his mind. I'm not so sure, but whatever the case, he's not a natural animal. And my men clearly saw it fit to take the animal out when they could have tranquillized it instead."

The scientist spoke up. "It is indeed a male. A very interesting specimen. I had it scanned and it's brain does seem capable of supporting elemental powers of some sort. Very curious. Also curious, it seems to have hollow bones."

"Rouge, the tag says 'Orrin'."

Rouge shook her head. This wasn't good news. If this creature had elemental powers and there were multiple creatures like such wandering about, there was no guarantee that they could be taken care of by the authorities every time. Supposing one was intelligent enough to avoid the weapons, and wanted to, many could be hurt or killed. After all, both Thea and Orrin had attacked. They hadn't, from what it seemed, been simply minding their own business and been bothered. They seemed to have gone seeking …

Prey.

Shadow thought back to 666. Where was she now? The situation with the monsters was worse than he had thought it would be. Thea and Orrin had once been people. Or mobians, rather. He and Rouge would need to get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible. Not just because of Sarah. Because someone was behind this.

Who? And why?

Shadow briefly took the flyer from earlier out of his hammerspace, looking at it.

_Who_, and _why_?

_**A/N: The plot thickens…**_


	5. Deep Fog

_**A/N: I really wanted to have this chapter (and the rest of the story as well) done by Halloween. My apologies! My life is super crazy right now… I won't go into that. And I have a bad tendency to get VERY distracted. To Mr. or Ms. Whisper: I don't know how to directly respond to your review since you're a guest, but I want you to know how much I appreciate it! Only Angyll has given me very much feedback on this story. **_

_**So, there is some confusion over Shadow. Does he have schizophrenia or some other mental instability? Does he still take medication? There's a long story behind this. The answer to both of these questions, in short, is "no". Shadow is actually perfectly normal! Regarding his hallucinations, at least. And he stopped taking medication because really, it was doing nothing for him. If anything, it was making things worse. (Splitting Truth: Chap 2) Why did he have illusions of a demon and such, then?**_

_**The Voice… Look again at Merging Lies Chapter 9. The Voice has ability to manipulate thoughts in many various ways and force illusions on Shadow to make him think he sees, feels, or hears things. The Voice even has limited access to his memories to restrain or push forward certain ones. He does this however he wants to get Shadow to do what he wants him to do. As presented in Chapter 3 (I believe) of Merging Lies, this is because he's trapped in Shadow's mind. He really exists, and really is a separate entity from Shadow, but he can't get out. He can't interact with people or do anything himself, so he uses Shadow as his gateway.**_

…_**Though he seems suspiciously quiet at the moment, doesn't he?**_

Rouge filled out the paperwork for the first two assignments and borrowed the fax machine at the police station to send what she and Shadow had found to GUN. After a few, brief moments, it was done. She turned to her partner. "Well, now what?" the white bat gave her hair a flip.

Shadow could see she was starting to tire, but the determination that flared in her eyes showed him she wasn't willing to rest yet. He started to walk with her out the station door. She followed as he spoke in a solemn tone, "Some farmers down southeast reported sighting something. Our report doesn't say if the creature was shot down… I'd assume when the fax was sent, the authorities were still searching for the creature…"

"I guess we'll just have to wait and see whether it's alive or not." Rouge sighed.

"If you can manage to sleep for the short time while we travel-"

"I doubt it. It's freezing out here." Rouge shivered. "But suppose if I do, then I do. If I don't, then I'll manage." She smiled at him.

"If you're cold right now, it will only be colder in the wind. I don't want you to get sick." Shadow looked at his best friend. "I have money. We could purchase more sufficient clothing if you need…"

"That's sweet of you, sugar. But I have money too… We should do that, though… Being sick while combating sleepless missions is _not_ on my to-do list." She shook her head.

"Just don't worry about color or style, then. We can't afford to loose much time." He smiled, whisking her off to SavingsLane. Rouge held on tight, enduring against the almost frosty autumn air. Once they reached the convenience store, Rouge purchased the first thick coat she felt she could tolerate. A black blazer with faux fur on the inside. Fortunately, the shopping didn't take long. They abandoned the store, Shadow navigating across Ivaysa, through Lava Reef, and past Oil Ocean. Sometime during the hour-long trip, Rouge fell asleep. Shadow slowed to a stop, noticing how thick the mist had suddenly become.. The moonlight barely seeped through the deep fog. All else was dark and murky. Shadow couldn't see anything, and he didn't want to run straight into a building, person, or vehicle. He considered the situation, wondering what he could do against the situation.

Rouge slept peacefully. He could wake her to see if she could see better with her night vision, but somehow he doubted it would make all that much of a difference. Firing a chaos spear to light the night wouldn't do much good either. He may hit something-or someone. A chaos blast would clear the mist for sure…

But he had no interest in damaging his surroundings, whatever they may be. Here in the rural lands, it was very quiet. Shadow could hear movement, but… it didn't benefit him all that much as far as navigation. It would help him steer clear of wolves, maybe. Assuming there were wolves. He could certainly hear some sort of howling in the distance. Maybe coyotes. Or simple, domesticated dogs. The wind swept through the vegetation around them. It seemed there wasn't much around. At least, not trees or bushes. He could feel he was standing on a soft, spongy surface. He had been running across grass just a moment ago, so it was more than likely he was still on grass. This made it unlikely he'd get hit by a car. Predators were the only possible threat.

After several moments of thought, Shadow remembered the Voice. The Voice had the strangest way of knowing things. It disturbed Shadow, however, it often came in handy.

_Do you know how to get through the mist safely?_

…

Shadow sighed in aggravation at not receiving an answer again. He felt oddly empty. It was probably because he was in a hurry and this cloud was taking, potentially, a huge toll on progress. _Still angry over the breaker?_

No response whatsoever. Shadow could only wonder why on earth a silly switch would make him so angry. Particularly considering that he had flicked the switch after that machine had attacked him…

Shadow stopped.

He had flicked the switch. That couldn't be the reason for the Voice's anger. Reasonably, the Voice would have gotten over Shadow's hesitation after the deed was done, wouldn't he? What was he so quiet for?

Rouge shifted in Shadow's arms, opening her eyes and forcing herself to keep them open. "Wha…?"

Shadow's ears flicked. He looked at his friend. "This mist is about as thick as your coat… I'm not sure how to get out of it. I was headed at full speed when it suddenly came up…"

Rouge looked at him, his face a bit blurry. The mist _was_ thick. She moved in a way that indicated she wanted to stand on her own two feet. Shadow set her down. The white bat looked around for a moment. "So that means we could be up to a half a mile into the mist…. Right?"

"Maybe even more. I guess it's lucky I didn't run headfirst into anything."

"Well, the quickest way out is probably going back the way you came. Then I guess we'd have to try to go around the mist. Where do you think we are?"

"We should be somewhat close to the farm. This is somewhere very near a bog area, so I'd guess the mist will take quite awhile to clear up..."

Rouge put her hands on her hips and huffed. "Of course. Well, I don't hear anything like people…" she strained to listen, "I don't think anyone's around… That would mean either the police took care of the creature or that…"

Shadow shut his eyes, lowering his head. "Let's try not to think that way. I'm sure the farmers will inform us of what's going on."

"Yeah, you're right. But we have to find them first! It's too bad I'm not as skilled a people hunter as I am at hunting treasure."

"It's been awhile since you've even done _that_."

The white bad smirked a little. "What are you saying? I'm rusty?"

"Not really…" Shadow said slowly, not fully sure what he'd been saying either.

Rouge giggled. "Okay, well I probably am a _little_ rusty. Now… Let's find these farmers, shall we?"

Shadow nodded in agreement. He focused on gathering chaos energy into one hand to create some light to go by. It was only about as strong as a lantern would be. He held the chaos flame and started back the way they'd come. The light allowed very limited help. They could now see three or four feet ahead.

Better than nothing. Bursts of wind swept past, urging them on. The two moved forward.

Rustling. Shadow looked over his shoulder. The unfortunate part of light was its ability to draw attention. It was like branding yourself with a target board and waiting for your enemy to attack you head on. If anything-anyone- saw them as prey, they would be found easily. The person or beast would have, at least for the first moment, the advantage. That could be all they needed, and then it might be over for Shadow and Rouge.

Shadow considered putting out the light, but stumbling through the utter darkness around them may be just as dangerous. He kept the chaos ignited, glancing back as the rustling continued behind them…

Silence. Only the shuffling footsteps of the pair as they continued on, moving slow enough to be sure they wouldn't fall into a hole or off the ledge of a cliff.

A horrible hissing screech stabbed Rouge and Shadows ears. Their heads whipped around, eyes searching, looking for the source of the noise. But it was too late.

"Rouge!" Shadow cried out in alarm as his best friend was pounced upon by a large, furry form. The chaos fizzled out just before Shadow could determine what it was. All he had processed was that it was not friendly.

It was the creature they were looking for.

Blood curling screams filled the air as Rouge was attacked. Shadow quickly reacted, spin dashing just away from where he knew Rouge was, driving himself full-force into the beast. The creature seemed to stumble, knocked off balance by Shadow's blow, but it only gave an irritated sort of hiss rather than an agonized one. "Rouge! Rouge?!" Shadow tried to find his way back over to her. He didn't have time to gather more chaos. He had no emerald. His best solution for the moment was to get to Rouge and get her out of the mist. Maybe the creature would follow them to the clearer area, where they'd be able to see it and anticipate its attacks. If not, he knew he'd have to go back in and try to fight the creature blind…

Or try to gather enough energy for a teleport and grab a flashlight. Then risk another teleport to get back. Either way, the creature needed to be dealt with as soon as possible.

He hated-almost more than anything- that this creature had once been like him. He pitied the poor soul who had this fate befall them. What other way was there though? Could such a horrible thing be reversed by any means? If so, how would the creature be held in the meantime for the safety of everyone else?

"Sh-shadow, over here! It bit my ear and stabbed my wing…"

The black and red hedgehog moved toward her, following the sound of her voice. Just as he was almost sure he'd found her, a blast of wind knocked him away, causing him to roll and tumble down some sort of small hill. He yelped. After the fall, he somewhat lost his sense of direction, now unsure of exactly where Rouge was. "Rouge?!"

Rouge scrambled backward. Due to her special senses, she knew exactly where the beast was. It was coming forward. She was certain it wanted to hurt her. She tried to think. What could she do against this creature who was 4 or five times larger? It had power over air. Rouge didn't have power over much of anything.

The monster released a demonic growl. Shadow pinpointed its location through hearing, spin dashing at it again and again. Rouge jumped to her feet to help. She shot at it with her handgun.

Her eyes widened. The bullets bounced right off of it. _How?_

Again and again and again. The bullets bounced off. Shadow bounced off as well, but he kept striking. The creature grabbed him with one of its insect legs. Both of his forelegs pinned him down, one stabbing through the cuff of his glove, the other doing the same. Shadow stared into it's eyes.

Eyes like the others. It was a giant, malformed and malicious butterfly. He'd never, ever expect such a beautiful, gentle, fragile creature to be turned into this…

It's razor, spider-like fangs dripped. With inhuman shrills, it snapped its jaws at Shadow, trying to devour him. Shadow kicked it and desperately pushed its head back with his feet. _What's it's weakness?!_

…

_Please, talk to me! _

Nothing.

_Why won't you help me! I could really use your help, you know! Was the breaker thing that bad? I'm sorry, okay? _Shadow screamed in his mind.

But still, there was no answer. The silence in his own mind was maddening to him. The empty feeling wouldn't go away. It frightened him. He couldn't recall ever having felt this before. _Voice…?! _He wriggled against the ferocious creature. Rouge was trying to shoot the creature in the eyes, but it blocked her bullets with its wings. The white bat dodged her own bullets. Shadow tore free from the beast and spin dashed into its abdomen, noticing its extra pair of legs and thick fur.

Shadow didn't know what to do. Desperate for a response of any sort, he began to recite a poem.

_It was many and many a year ago,  
In a kingdom by the sea,  
That a maiden there lived whom you may know  
By the name of ANNABEL LEE;_

Silence. Shadow dodged as the creature tried furiously to grab him again. The dark hedgehog spin dashed into its wings, hoping it was a weak point, but he had no such luck. He tried several times, still reciting the poem.

_And this maiden she lived with no other thought  
Than to love and be loved by me.  
I was a child and she was a child,  
In this kingdom by the sea;_

He was shaking. The Voice couldn't stand this poem. The Voice would scream at him to shut up. But now the Voice was silent. As silent as the grave. Shadow couldn't believe it. Something was desperately wrong. In his worry, he stopped moving entirely. He shouted as loud as he could into the void of his consciousness.

_But we loved with a love that was more than love-  
I and my Annabel Lee;  
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven  
Coveted her and me!_

Shadow's heart pounded. The creature slammed into him. The black and red hedgehog had no time to dodge. Rouge kept shooting, finally hitting her target; into its mouth. The monster screamed in agony, a scream that made fur stand on end. But it did not stop attacking. Shadow struggled against it more, charging up chaos energy as much as he could. He released a blast…

The creature fell, dead.

But Shadow could hardly think of the fallen creature. The Voice he had known all his life… he was gone. The black hedgehog slowly looked to Rouge.

"…We have to go back to that mansion."


	6. Ghosts

_**A/N: Apologies for the lack of updates! Currently trying to finish this semester of college; 24 more days to go! Then updates should be frequent again. For now, this is on hold. So sorry. =( Fortunately though, I can still hand you all another chapter. I actually finished it awhile ago, it just needed some revision. Hooray!**_

_Bang_. _Bang_. _**BANG**_.

The Voice cursed. This wasn't supposed to happen. He hadn't followed the directions of the Arabic writing just to trade one holding cell for another. Someone knew about him. He wondered what mortal would be intelligent enough, but he brushed it aside. If he could just escape this… maybe break the glass. But while the glass made sound, it clearly was being dealt no damage. Nothing the Voice could do would shatter the glass. But oh, _if only_ he were set free…

He should have known it was too good to be true. How could he have been such a fool? He looked around. Dark. Quiet. Part of him was grateful for not having to deal with Shadow, but resentment strongly remained. Without Shadow, he was nothing. Nothing but a Voice…

Less than that. He couldn't be heard now by anyone. He couldn't be seen. Shadow had zipped right past him. For a moment there had been some hope. For a moment, Shadow seemed to have seen him… But no. Shadow had kept going. If he had been seen, Shadow clearly didn't think he was worth stopping for. He'd been too busy searching for psychotic Sarah.

Sarah, Sarah. How he'd had high hopes… But he could see right through her. She was no better than the others now. Poor, pathetic Sarah…

The Voice shuffled down the hall. It seemed there was nothing to do. A _mirror_ was his prison. A cold, lifeless mirror. Was he to be stuck here forever? There seemed a possibility. The mortal who'd had him captured might want something with him, but then why had he not yet appeared? It'd been half a day since his capture. By now, everyone must have gone home. He could see very dim light beaming through the windows. It was morning in Kingdom Valley… A storm was rolling in. It would be there at any moment. The Voice would welcome a disturbance to this maddening silence. What a horrid trick! All he wanted was his freedom…

It was cruelty to offer it and then snatch it away! Shadow wouldn't likely be back to get him, either. He didn't like him at all. He was probably relieved to be free of a _burden_.

The Voice swallowed, and then clenching a fist, shut his eyes. He would escape this prison, somehow. He wouldn't be forgotten.

He wouldn't forget.

Lightning struck outside, sending a bright flash down the hall. The Voice passively thought of a song to sing, only hoping to pass the time. Thunder boomed, echoing his heart song. _Ich bin die stime aus dem kissen. Ich singe bis…_ Suddenly, a sob caught his ears. He stopped, listening.

The sobbing continued brokenly. Heart-wrenchingly. It seemed like the cry of a ghost in the night. The weeping of the dead. However, the Voice realized he could feel someone near. This was a living soul, that of a female. The Voice wandered toward the sound, unable to leave the mirror but still doing the best that he could. He figured that the girl was on the other side of the glass; not someone he could reach. But in the least, maybe he'd find something to be entertained by for a few moments.

To his utter dismay, he found he was quite close to the crying, but he could see no one. No one at all. It did not seem possible the weeping girl could be anywhere but right in front of him; the sound was too near. Too loud. He glanced around him, a bit puzzled, then happened to look up.

It then hit him. This mirror curved. It rose from the ground to form a wall, then bent down and around to form another, opposite. It was an arch. Could it be that there was someone else on the other side? The Voice smiled devilishly. This was perfect. All too perfect. With a stroke of his wings, he clamored up to the top of the slope, a thin space between it and the ceiling. He squeezed through, pausing and looking down on the soul he could now see.

A familiar cape was draped over her as she desperately covered her ears and sobbed. She had curled herself up as tightly as she could. The Voice knew her form. His expression changed upon recognition, shifting to a deep frown. He slid down the mirror, landing next to her. She did not even look up. Another crash of thunder boomed through the mansion, vibrating through the mirror walls. She let out a terrified cry and continued to weep. The Voice slipped her hood back to see her face. She looked up, fearfully, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Sarah, _poor _Sarah…" The Voice glowered down at her.

Meanwhile, Rouge the bat looked at her best friend in dismay. His blast had temporarily cleared the mist. The moon shone down on them with its clear silver light. "Go back? Shadow, what about these creatures?"

"I know we agreed this is priority, but I'm starting to think the opposite. Something was weird about that mansion, and I think there's a connection." Shadow said.

Rouge frowned. "About the mansion… not Sarah?"

Shadow nodded. "Unless Sarah knows about this, it's not her I'd be after right now. Though it seems perfectly plausible that she would know something."

"How do you figure that?"

"She disappeared early on, then I was attacked by a machine in a hidden laboratory… I don't know, being that we couldn't find her, it just seems suspicious, like maybe she knew something about the place."

"Shadow, I see a little of what you mean, but her disappearance… Well, I was thinking about it, and what if maybe she fell into something too?"

Shadow looked up at Rouge. "Fell?"

"You fell through a trap door to get to the laboratory, right? What if something like that happened to her and we overlooked the door?" Rouge felt torn and stressed, shaking her head. "We don't really have time to go back with these creatures, but I'm saying, what if she's trapped somewhere, and hurt? …Shadow, is there something you're not telling me?" She tilted her head at the black and red hedgehog.

"…Like I said. She's dangerous, like me. There are stories about her I wouldn't repeat… She's a psychopath."

Rouge slowly nodded, but remembered Sarah's timid gaze when they had shook hands. "She didn't seem that way, though." The white bat said quietly.

Shadow lowered his head, frowning deeply. "I know…" _She seemed different…_

"You thought she left the mansion, right?" Rouge asked.

"Yes?" Shadow looked up, wondering what she was getting at now.

"And you also thought she was the one who had been powering the machine, right."

"I suppose I implied that."

"Then why would we need to go back if she's not there?"

Shadow shut his eyes. "Either we go back, or we need to find a Chaos Emerald. _That_… It-" Shadow gestured to the fallen butterfly mutant, "…was bulletproof! And withstood our attacks better than most machines would. If it's that strong, we have a _grave_ problem on our hands. Imagine other creatures like that, with stronger powers like the lion, Orrin had. That butterfly's power was weak in comparison to what some people are capable of… Or maybe just weak in general."

Rouge looked down. "Point taken. Even when I managed to fire a bullet inside its mouth, it kept going like a mad elephant or something… Your chaos attack is what really worked."

"I suppose I'm just concerned… Thea and Orrin weren't bulletproof. If this butterfly was, what if someone was trying to genetically engineer invincibility?" Shadow stepped toward the creature, looking at its name band.

'Mellanie.'

Rouge tried not to shudder at the thought. "If they managed bullet proof skin and an ability to withstand your spin dash… Could _anything_ be possible?"

Shadow took a moment of silence, then glanced at his partner.

"Anything."

The solid black hedgehog stared up at the white, winged tenrec towering over her. "W-who are you?" Sarah tried to demand the answer, but her voice squeaked.

"What are you doing here?" The Voice pushed her question aside. His face remained void of the pleasure he felt at being able to directly speak to someone else. He could touch this girl. She could see him. This would be more fun than he'd had in many years.

The cold tone he used sent her fumbling for an answer despite her dismay at having been asked. "I-I fell… here…"

"You fell." The Voice repeated, his icy blue irises drilling into violet ones. "How did you fall?"

"I just did, okay?!" She drew back from him.

It was an old game. Too old. How he missed the sound of horrified screams, yet… it was time to change the game. Liven it up a bit and do something a little different. He'd done it with Shadow, long, long ago. Shadow had been his first time trying to interact with a mortal for more than a short while. Maybe he'd do the same with this girl, since he'd never tried it with a female before. He could stick around her, mess with her fragile mind, and confuse her so much that she'd actually come running to him for help. It was such a fun game… and due to his ability to be seen by her, and touch her, he could actually play it as he liked…

She glared. "You didn't answer me anyway! Who are y-" Another clash of thunder shook her. She covered her ears, whimpering.

The Voice paused. His hand twitched. After a few seconds, he moved closer to her, wrapping her in a comforting embrace. "…It's alright…" He said gently, his gaze softening. "It's just thunder. It can't hurt you…"

"I-it hurts my ears…" She said, hesitant of uncovering them. She seemed uncomfortable, but as thunder clashed again, she hid her face in the Voice's snowy white quills and fur. He tensed a bit, uncomfortable himself, but began to caress her anyway. He didn't know if it was the right reaction. He truly didn't know how to interact with mortals; not kindly. But he continued when she did not object. She seemed a bit more comfortable, though hopelessly inconsolable over the thunder. The Voice did not want to admit it but…

He felt pity for her.

"So we don't know where any are?" Rouge carried Shadow through the air, just trying to navigate to a familiar area. The thick fog stretched for miles, aside from the small area where Shadow had cleared it. Above the fog, things were more clear, but the fog blanketed the ground like snow.

"I can't think of any."

"Are you sure?"

"Ye-" Shadow paused. "Wait, Sonic has a yellow one!"

"_Sonic_ does? You know, this is supposed to be top secret and all…" Rouge said thoughtfully, "…but maybe we could use his help."

"No, that would be a last resort. This is our mission and it's best not to involve anyone who doesn't need to be. Besides, if my attacks without chaos were worthless, what will his do?"

Rouge sighed. He had a point. Again. "Well, next stop, Tails' Workshop!" She nodded to herself. "Agh, when does this fog end?"

"I'd guess another mile." Shadow was glad no one was there to see he was being carried anywhere.

The bat beat her wings harder against the air.

The trip back over to the Mystic Ruins took longer than either of them would have hoped. The ultimate life form had been placed back on the ground, and the bat had once again found a resting place in her best friend's arms. She sighed tiredly, softly as the workshop came into sight and Shadow skidded to a halt. He set her on her feet, then approached Tails' front door.

_**KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK.**_

Rouge was startled by force of Shadow's pounding. Then again, it was an urgent situation. She stood by patiently, waiting for the door to open.

A weary kitsune came to the door, dressed still in nightclothes and a nightcap and looking at the two unexpected visitors with sleepy eyes. "Shadow…? Rouge?"

"I'm sorry to wake you at this hour, Miles. But this is important."

"I'd guess so." The nine year old mumbled. "It's 3 AM. What's the problem?" He rubbed his eyes, trying to wake up faster.

Shadow put a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to do anything. We just need to know where Sonic is."

"Sonic?" The kit looked at Shadow, puzzled. "If you need Sonic, you'll need me, right?" His ears perked a bit.

"Sorry, Miles, but we just need his chaos emerald. For government business." Shadow almost felt bad to reject his help.

Tails seemed more understanding. "Oh, I see." He nodded, accepting that he wasn't needed. "I'm sorry I don't have that fake emerald still, or I'd give you that. Sonic did stop by after the dinner party, and we talked for awhile. He said he was going to explore that infamous weird house. You know, since he was curious."

"What house?" Shadow asked. Rouge looked blank.

"The Winchester Mystery House. You know, with the stairs and doors that lead nowhere and all?" Tails seemed surprised as neither gave any indication of knowing what he was referring to. "You've never heard of it? It's one of the most talked about places this time of year, last I checked."

Shadow shook his head. "Did Sonic say he'd be there awhile?"

The kit smiled and gave a nod. "Run real quick, and you can catch him! He said he was going to spend the night to see if any ghosts would pop up. He doesn't believe in ghosts, so he's trying to test the supernatural."

"Would you by any chance have directions?"

_I wish we could leave here. I wonder if he can't get out either._ Sarah thought, taking in the comfort of an embrace to ease her terror of the booming sound outside.

_There's always a way to leave._

Sarah froze.

_Confinement is torture, but even under the tightest lock and key you always have freedom in your mind. Being in a bad spot can always be made better._

"…Am I crazy? I just heard you in my head."

He smiled at her a bit slyly. _I know._

…_This is… interesting. _Sarah stared at him a bit. _But, anyway, I think you're right… _

_Of course I am._

Sarah looked around her. Darkness. The mirror. Since the Voice seemed nice enough, she hugged him a bit tighter, afraid of the endless black leading away from the mirror. She was lightly quivering. He didn't release her, his utter discomfort slowly ebbing away into neutrality.

Curiosity filled the Voice to the brim and he wondered what had happened to her. She'd been a psychopath, and now she was full of terror and nervousness.

_I'm glad not to be alone. S-sorry for being all… _She released him, feeling embarrassed at hugging a practical stranger so much.

It's alright. He was almost _disappointed_ as she let go. Then, the Voice realized something. Wait, was he…?!

He wasn't _really _going soft for this girl, was he? He'd _**never**_ hugged anyone before.

_**A/N: Betcha didn't see that coming! Stay tuned…**_


End file.
